Rides4Refugees Part 3: Refugee Community in Central Ohio
Our third post in this blog series explores the refugee community in central Ohio, including its positive economic impact.
As the city’s New Americans Initiative notes, Columbus has a long history as a destination for immigrants and refugees in our nation, and their rich legacy remains in our historic neighborhoods such as German Village, Italian Village, and Hungarian Village. Columbus continues to welcome a diverse group of refugees, with approximately 16,600 settling in the area from 1983 to 2015. The Columbus Dispatch notes that the six largest refugee communities are from Bhutan, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Myanmar. The refugees have fled war, ethnic cleansing, and political instability. Some refugees from Iraq and Afghanistan assisted the U.S. military or government in those countries, leading to special immigrant Visas which enabled them to escape persecution.
The City of Columbus and Franklin County have partnered extensively in recent years with refugee and immigration organizations to build a welcoming community for all residents. Columbus City Council and Franklin County recently collaborated with Welcoming America, New American Economy (now the American Immigration Council) and US Together to create a Strategic Welcoming Plan for immigrants and refugees, with a goal of helping Columbus become a “more equitable, prosperous community by ensuring that all residents can belong.”
Refugees make a major impact in central Ohio; in fact Community Research Partners estimates that [as of 2015] the central Ohio refugee community contribute[d] $1.6 billion to the Columbus Metropolitan Statistical area economy. The region’s 2022–2025 Strategic Welcoming Plan notes that approximately 32,700 refugees reside in central Ohio, contributing $78.3 million in state and local taxes and $576.7 million in spending power.
In a 2015 report by Welcoming America and Community Research Partners (CRP) — a partnership of the City of Columbus, The Ohio State University, and other groups — community leaders spoke to a few refugees who originated from Laos, Bhutan, Eritrea, Cuba, and other countries. These interviews explore the range of experiences and emotions that they had when arriving and establishing themselves in Central Ohio. Though all of their journeys are unique and driven by different reasons, the one common factor is that they have established community in this now not-so-new world.
By working with refugee resettlement agencies such as CRIS (Community Refugee & Immigration Services), JFS (Jewish Family Services), and ETSS (Tewahedo Social Services), refugees can equip themselves with knowledge and resources to get their footing in central Ohio. These resources and organizations are so valuable to incoming refugees that they have organically created a community along Bethel Rd, right where CRIS is established. Near Bethel Rd is another prominent hub, Morse Rd. This area is an unofficial community hotspot as it’s full of diverse grocery stores, restaurants, religious establishments, and more.
Imagine that you live in the middle of Morse Rd. It would seem like an ideal location. Being in the middle of this cultural melting pot should allow you to have easier access to international grocery stores, restaurants, religious establishments, and more. But a simple grocery trip can turn into a tremendous and draining journey if you don’t have a vehicle.
If you decide that a trip to the international grocery store isn’t feasible, you might settle on going to a much closer and well-known American chain. But even this option presents many obstacles and hardships. How much can you carry back home? What happens if the weather isn’t ideal? What happens if a bag breaks on your walk? Would it be worth taking the bus? Are there even bus stops available? This simple errand turns into an all-day excursion.
Next Post: Accessible Mobility Timeline
Prior posts in this series:
Innovation Sprint Aims to Enhance Mobility for Refugee Community
